BY MARC CHAMPION IN ISTANBUL AND JOSHUA MITNICK IN TEL AVIV

Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Tuesday he was trying to arrange a visit to Gaza, a move that highlights diplomatic challenges Israel faces amid the Arab Spring and could undermine efforts to fix relations with Ankara.

Israel opposes any move to provide international legitimacy to Hamas, the militant Palestinian movement that won elections to govern the Gaza Strip in 2006. Mr. Erdogan would be one of the highest international officials ever to have visited Gaza.